So what’s a cleaning aficionado to do, besides hoping for coupons and watching for sales? Our favorite solution of all: DIY it! Yes, it’s totally possible to make your own “magic erasers” at home, and it’s much easier than we ever would have thought.

The secret? Not really so secret! You just need the right cleaning mixture, and – this part’s key – melamine sponges. Unlike your average sponge, melamine sponges are more like foam and, more importantly, are open-cell and microporous. What does this quality mean? That while it feels soft to our hands, it’s actually really abrasive, acting similarly to extremely fine sandpaper, and able to get at deeper, more intense stains like other sponges and cloths can’t.

So your average store-bought magic eraser? It’s just a saturated melamine sponge, with a regular old blue sponge on the bottom. Once you realize THAT fact, it’s easy to buy a bunch of melamine sponges – they’re available in bulk in places like Amazon! – and create your own. Here’s how to do it.

DIY Magic Eraser

Materials

Melamine sponge(s)

1 cup hot water, per sponge

1 tablespoon baking soda, per sponge

1 teaspoon Borax, per sponge

Bucket or bowl (depending on number of sponges)

Directions

Fill the bowl – or bucket, if you’re making more than one sponge – with the water, 1 cup per sponge you’re hoping to make.

Add the baking soda and the Borax – again, adjusting the ratio as needed for the number of sponges you’re making – and stir until both ingredients have fully dissolved in the water.

Add the sponges to the baking-soda-Borax-water, and submerge. Allow the sponges to soak until they are fully saturated with the mixture.

Squeeze out any excess liquid from the sponge, and start cleaning!

Of course, you’ll notice a small difference between these DIY magic erasers and the store-bought ones: the sponges only have their magical cleaning solution when you’re ready to clean. The solution isn’t stored in a dry sponge, to be activated by water when you’re ready to clean. But considering how much money you’ll save, it’s the tiniest price to pay!

Why would you make more than one, then? We can think of several reasons, but our favorite has to be getting the whole family involved in the cleaning frenzy. Whip up a bunch, give one to each member of the family, and send them out to get your whole house clean in no time.

To see these DIY magic erasers in action, and to learn just how much money you’ll be saving, check out this video from Houston’s ABC 13 Eyewitness News below! You have to check out the comparison with the store-bought Magic Erasers, too; the winner in this cleaning contest might surprise you!

What do you think of this DIY version of Magic Erasers? Have you ever made one before? Is there another combination of cleaning ingredients that works just as well? (We’ve heard rumors that you can use Castile soap instead of Borax, if you want!) Do you think you’ll give this homemade version a try? Tell us what you think, and be sure to let us know if you give this DIY cleaning project a try!